Coin holder

ABSTRACT

A portable coin holder having a receiving space that the coin can be easily push into and taken from is disclosed. The coin holder may include a movable button, a coin receiving space and one or more coin insertion slots. When in use, the coin is inserted into one of the coin insertion slots, and when the coin is substantially inside the coin insertion slot, the coin drops down to the receiving space. When the user wishes to take the coin out of the receiving space, the user slightly move the movable button along direction and the coin in the receiving space would be pushed up to the insertion slot by a supporting surface, and when the coin substantially comes out, the movable button restores to its original position.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 (e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/705,305, filed on Sep. 25, 2012, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a coin holder, and more particularly to a portable coin holder having a receiving space that the coin can be easily push into and taken from.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Coins are commonly used in our daily lives, but coins are heavier than paper bills and difficult to carry. There have been prior attempts to associate coins with key holding devices such that the coins are available to a vehicle operator. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,166,503 to Bundy, U.S. Pat. No. 4,166,489 to Lemelson and U.S. Pat. No. 4,907,694 to Miller et al. are all directed to combination coin and key holders, each of which holds coins in a pouch or sleeve such that the coins are not visible and such that the pouch or sleeve must be opened to allow access to the coins.

Also, U.S. Pat. No. 5,884,513 to Norris discloses a combined coin and key holder including a coin holder housing which has an outline shaped as a vehicle, and a closed loop is attached to the coin holder housing, preferably in the front end of the vehicle outline, for connection of a key ring, chain, or other key holding device thereto. A pair of coin slots are provided in the coin holder housing on the bottom side of the vehicle outline, with each slot being dimensioned to hold a specific coin. However, Norris' coin holder number can only hold very limited number of coins and it is somewhat unsafe to display the coins. Therefore, there remains a need for a new and improved coin holder to overcome the problems presented above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a coin holder where the coins can be easily pushed into a receiving space and taken from the same

It is another object of the present invention to provide a coin holder with a key chain, so that the user can bring them altogether to save space and the user can easily retrieve the coins when necessary.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a coin holder with a key chain, so that vehicle operators can have quick access to coins for toll booths, parking meters, or other travel related necessities.

In one embodiment, a coin holder may include a movable button, a coin receiving space and one or more coin insertion slots. When in use, the coin is inserted into one of the coin insertion slots, and when the coin is substantially inside the coin insertion slot, the coin drops down to the receiving space. It is noted that when the coin is pushed into the insertion slot, the movable button is correspondingly moved along the same direction, and when the coin is pushed down to the receiving space, the movable button is restored to its original position.

When the user wishes to take the coin out of the receiving space, the user slightly move the movable button away from the coin and the coin in the receiving space would be pushed up to the insertion slot by a supporting surface, and when the coin substantially comes out, the movable button restores to its original position. The coin holder may connect to a key chain to better serve vehicle operators need as described above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic view of the coin holder in the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates one embodiment of the coin holder in the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The detailed description set forth below is intended as a description of the presently exemplary device provided in accordance with aspects of the present invention and is not intended to represent the only forms in which the present invention may be prepared or utilized. It is to be understood, rather, that the same or equivalent functions and components may be accomplished by different embodiments that are also intended to be encompassed within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood to one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Although any methods, devices and materials similar or equivalent to those described can be used in the practice or testing of the invention, the exemplary methods, devices and materials are now described.

All publications mentioned are incorporated by reference for the purpose of describing and disclosing, for example, the designs and methodologies that are described in the publications that might be used in connection with the presently described invention. The publications listed or discussed above, below and throughout the text are provided solely for their disclosure prior to the filing date of the present application. Nothing herein is to be construed as an admission that the inventors are not entitled to antedate such disclosure by virtue of prior invention.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 2, a coin holder may include a movable button 110, a coin receiving space 120 and one or more coin insertion slots 130. When in use, the coin is inserted into one of the coin insertion slots 130 along direction A1, and when the coin is substantially inside the coin insertion slot 130, the coin drops down along direction A2 to be stored in the receiving space 120. It is noted that when the coin is pushed into the insertion slot 130, the movable button 110 is correspondingly moved along the same direction, and meanwhile a supporting surface (not shown) underneath the coin moves away so the coin drops down to the receiving space 120. When the coin drops into the receiving space 120, the movable button 110 is restored to its original position.

When the user wants to take the coin out of the receiving space 120, the user slightly move the movable button 110 along direction B1, and the coin in the receiving space would be pushed up to the insertion slot 130 by the supporting surface (not shown), and when the coin substantially comes out, the movable button 110 restores to its original position. The coin holder 100 may connect to a key chain 140 to better serve vehicle operators need as described above.

Having described the invention by the description and illustrations above, it should be understood that these are exemplary of the invention and are not to be considered as limiting. Accordingly, the invention is not to be considered as limited by the foregoing description, but includes any equivalents. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A coin holder comprising a movable button, a coin receiving space and one or more coin insertion slots, wherein a coin is inserted into one of the coin insertion slots to push the movable button, and when the coin is substantially inside the coin insertion slot, a supporting surface moves away so the coin drops down to the receiving space, and the movable button is restored to its original position.
 2. The coin holder of claim 1, wherein the coin is retrieved when the movable button is slid along a direction away from the coin, and the coin in the receiving space is pushed up to the insertion slot by the supporting surface, and when the coin substantially comes out, the movable button restores to its original position.
 3. The coin holder of claim 1, wherein a key chain is connected to the coin holder. 